Victims of violence must not be forgotten, stress Colombian bishops

Violence “has been a constant in the political and social history of our nation,” Bishop Juan Vicente Cordoba said during an address to Colombia's Congress on April 6. “The victims of this unfortunate phenomenon have been many, but most of them go unnoticed and are forgotten.”

The bishop, who is the secretary general of the country's bishops' conference, announced that a Day of Prayer for the Victims of Violence will be observed in Colombia on Good Friday, April 22.

Bishop Cordoba said the Church considers it her task “to shed light on the victims' sufferings and to demand that legal measures be taken to fully restore the rights that were violently taken from them.”

The day of prayer is intended to be an expression of solidarity with the victims “on their journey of reconciliation and forgiveness,” the bishop stated. He urged those responsible for the conflict to realize the gravity of their crimes, seek conversion and “carry out acts of reparation in support of the victims.”